The Effect of Substance P on an Intervertebral Disc Rat Organ Culture Model.

Publication/Presentation Date

12-15-2016

Abstract

STUDY DESIGN: Laboratory study.

OBJECTIVE: Evaluate the effect of substance P (SP) on an intervertebral disc rat organ culture model.

SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: Monolayer cell experiments have demonstrated that exposure intervertebral disc tissue cells to SP leads to upregulation in inflammatory cytokine expression; however, this has not been evaluated in a more complex organ culture model.

METHODS: Forty-eight intervertebral discs from eight rats were used in an organ culture model. Intervertebral discs were divided into three groups: control, SP-treated group, and a group treated with an SP antagonist followed by SP. Cytokine antibody array was used to quantify expression patterns, which were confirmed using ELISA and real-time polymerase chain reaction.

RESULTS: The cytokine array demonstrated a 3.40 ±  0.59-fold increase in interleukin 6 (IL-6) expression in the SP group (P = 0.004), and the effect of SP was mitigated by the SP antagonist (P = 0.03). These results were verified as ELISA demonstrated a significant difference in the IL-6 level between the control group and SP group (0.73 vs. 5.80 ng/mL, P <  0.001), and there was a significant difference in the IL-6 level between the SP and the SP antagonist group (5.80 vs. 4.02 ng/mL, P = 0.01). Similarly, the real-time polymerase chain reaction demonstrated that the discs treated with SP had a 4.77-fold increase in IL-6 levels (P = 0.01) compared to controls, and a significantly greater increase in IL-6 levels between the intervertebral discs in the SP group and those in the SP antagonist group versus control (4.77 vs. 1.57, P = 0.02).

CONCLUSION: SP lead to the activation of an inflammatory pathway by increasing expression of IL-6 in an intervertebral disc organ culture model. These results provide evidence that SP may be an important factor in the link between intervertebral disc degeneration and low back pain.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: N/A.

Volume

41

Issue

24

First Page

1851

Last Page

1859

ISSN

1528-1159

Disciplines

Business Administration, Management, and Operations | Health and Medical Administration | Management Sciences and Quantitative Methods

PubMedID

27163370

Department(s)

Administration and Leadership

Document Type

Article

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